Bone trauma, also known as skeletal trauma, refers to any damage or alteration to bones that can occur before, during, or after death. It can be caused by a variety of forces, including:
compression, tension, bending, shear, torsion, blunt force, sharp force, high velocity projectiles, and thermal exposure.
A traumatic fracture is a type of bone trauma that occurs when a bone is subjected to significant or extreme force. This can happen from a fall, car accident, or forceful overextension, such as a twisting injury.
Some other types of bone trauma include:
Pathologic fracture
A fracture that occurs in a bone that has been weakened by an underlying disease, such as osteoporosis or some types of cancer
Periprosthetic fracture
A fracture that occurs at the point of mechanical weakness at the end of an implant
Stress fracture
A break in the bone that develops due to repeated or prolonged forces against the bone
Symptoms of a broken bone include:
- Pain
- Swelling
- Bruising
- Discolored skin around the affected area
- Protrusion of the affected area at an unusual angle
- Inability to put weight on the injured area
- Inability to move the affected area
- A grating sensation in the affected bone or joint
- Bleeding if it is an open fracture
